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Recently aquired this weight and have done some research, mainly in Paul Hollisters 1969 reference book. This is the first time I had ever seen one like this. According to his book it was made by the glass workers unofficially and there were very few of them as they were not production items. The guy I bought it off said he believed it would be a "love token". Pauls book added these were made by a die being made and powdered glass chippings brushed into the die grooves and then picked up by a gather of glass and then further encased with glass. The whole process from die to finish took quite a few hours. I dont have a large wallet so I considered this item for a long time(24 hours), but was so enchanted by its history I had to buy it, even at a price I would not normally pay for something I knew little about. If anybody else could shed any light on the subject it would be much appreciated. Regards Roger.

What is the size of this weight? I guess that it could be roughly 2/3 that of a magnum weight shown in Hollister's book (1st edition) - see below.

I assume your copy of Hollister's book is a second edition. In the 1st edition there is less comment but there is a statement that earlier Port Elizabeth "rare bird weights", using powdered glass "probably placed on a metal or a wooden die", were a "prototype for the later Millville weights featuring pictures".

The comment about the Millville 'picture weights' includes a reference to Fig. 212 and Col Fig. 114 [ * ], which show a magnum size weight [but actual size not given] with the same form of coloured border as on your weight. The floral parts of yours are (mostly) an exact match to the upper part of the magnum weight in the book, which is a very full floral display in a substantial basket.

[ * ] For Col Fig. 114 the caption states, "Port Elizabeth or Millville ...". So it looks as though there was uncertainty at that time about the magnum weight shown actually being one of the "later Millville weights featuring pictures".

Hi Tigerchips, the thought I had about the accent over the E is that the glass workers very often emigrated from Europe, so the names could for instance be 'emil and cloe. But that is speculation of course. Regards Roger.

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Hi Kevin, the weight is 4.50 inches diameter. My book doesnt say second edition so I guess its a first edition. Perhaps you could amend my subject title to circa 1870 as these were made after 1863. The non sharpness of the subject compared to the dog underneath possibly suggesting a wooden die rather than a metal die? I got the impression the term millville applied to an area. The piece I mentioned about this being an unofficial item may be true or may be not true, but having the letters E and C carved in the die, how many people would want to own it if it were put for sale as new at that time? Or was it someone high up in the company who commisioned it as a one off? Difficult to answer these questions without more photos and info. I'll keep looking, the only one I have seen for sale so far was back in 2003. Regards Roger.

Hi all, done another 3 hours research, if this is American , Port Elizabeth/ Millville the workers who made them were likely to have come from Belgium. If you look up Val St Lambert perhaps on the "paperweight mall" link you will see a pansy weight of very close design to mine. Regards Roger.

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Hi all, done another 3 hours research, if this is American , Port Elizabeth/ Millville the workers who made them were likely to have come from Belgium. If you look up Val St Lambert perhaps on the "paperweight mall" link you will see a pansy weight of very close design to mine. Regards Roger.

The "paperweight mall" link to VSL is at the very bottom of the page. Roger.